Pueblo Style Roofs

Taos pueblo n m with domed oven in the foreground.

Pueblo style roofs.

Pueblo style architecture seeks to imitate the appearance of traditional adobe construction though more modern materials such as brick or concrete are often substituted. The region s earliest structures were crafted by ancient peoples from adobe bricks a blend of earth and clay subsoils mixed with water bound with straw and fibers and cured in the sun. From american to gothic revival to pueblo the unique architectural style of a building is composed of specific details and architectural elements that together form the style. The multistoried permanent attached homes typical of this tradition are modeled after the cliff dwellings built by the ancestral pueblo anasazi culture beginning in approximately ad 1150.

This architectural form continued to be used by many pueblo peoples in the early 21st century. If adobe is not used rounded corners irregular parapets and thick battered walls are used to simulate it. The flat roofs and earth toned walls of the pueblo style were inspired by the simple structures of the pueblo indians. Common features of the pueblo revival style include projecting wooden roof beams or vigas which sometimes serve no structural purpose corbels curved often stylized beam supports and latillas which are peeled branches or strips of wood laid across the tops of vigas to create a foundation usually supporting dirt or clay for a roof.